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The following is the transcript of a speech given by the Chief Executive, Mr Tung Chee Hwa, at a banquet for the Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr Goh Chok Tong, today (April 17).

Prime Minister, Mrs Goh, Excellencies, Friends, Ladies and Gentlemen. We are delighted to be here to welcome the Prime Minister and his delegation on his first official visit to Hong Kong. I am particularly happy to welcome him because he has been a friend for a long, long time already. But although, Prime Minister, you have visited Hong Kong many times already, and you probably know the golf courses here better than many of the others sitting in this room, this is your first official function and we want to extend to you and your colleagues, and Mrs Goh, a most warm welcome.

Two months after I assumed the responsibility as Chief Executive of Hong Kong, I visited you in Singapore, Prime Minister, and you gave me and my colleagues and my wife a most warm welcome. I remember attending the dinner function. At that dinner function, I recalled the fact that the Prime Minister and I were in the shipping business together, that we were partners in shipping ventures and that I recalled, in 1977, you left the shipping business to go into politics and rose through the ranks to assume the responsibility as a Prime Minister. I said to you then, "Twenty years later I have done the same thing." At that time, I said, "If I knew shipping was so difficult for those twenty years and politics so easy, I would have done that a long time ago." What I didn't realise, now three years on, to tell you honestly, is that I probably spoke too soon.

Prime Minister, Asia has gone through a very difficult time. Singapore has gone through a difficult time. Hong Kong has gone through, also, a very difficult time. But I am pleased that we are now emerging from the difficulties and moving forward with renewed strength.

Sitting in Hong Kong, we watched with admiration how Singapore was the first country, in fact, in Asia, to come out of the difficulties. Your past effort to diversify your economy, to open up your markets to competition, has shown the results. And your constant - in Mandarin we say, "Ju An Si Wei", that is, when you are in good times you keep on reminding the population of the possible difficulties ahead, and to be able to take tough decisions and implement them when there are difficulties, when you had difficulties. And these are showing through in this very tremendous recovery you are enjoying today. All this has been possible because of your very strong leadership and I want to take this opportunity to congratulate you and to congratulate Singapore for what you have done through these difficult times.

Prime Minister, in Hong Kong we have also gone through a very difficult time. We had five quarters of negative growth. But I am also happy to tell you that our economy is also rebounding strongly and we are optimistic that the recovery is here to stay now. Some will say, "Well, it depends on what will happen in Wall Street tomorrow". But I think the basic recovery of Singapore, Hong Kong, Asia, is here now to stay. So we are indeed very delighted that after two-and-a-half, close to three years, of very challenging times, one, how to successfully implement 'one country, two systems', and secondly, how to get the recovery going, we have now come out of the difficulties and are moving ahead very strongly.

People, Prime Minister, have always pictured Hong Kong and Singapore as competitors, and I would have to say that Hong Kong and Singapore are competitors. In many areas we are competitors. But I also want to say there is nothing wrong with competition. Competition makes Hong Kong healthy; competition makes Singapore healthy, and competition makes us both more efficient and more effective. And there is nothing like healthy, friendly competition.

But I also want to highlight the close relationship we have. Singapore and Hong Kong are each others respective major trading partners. Last year, 350,000 Singaporeans visited Hong Kong and 300,000 Hong Kong people visited Singapore. There are a number of exchange programmes which the Government of Singapore, civil servants and government officials, and the Hong Kong Government civil servants are involved in, whether it is the Vocational Training Centre or the Board of Governors of Singapore's Civil Service College, or our Environmental Advisory Council where Singaporeans sit on our Board or Council and vice versa. All this enhances better understanding, as well as learning from each other - the experience which we all gather together.

Singapore and Hong Kong both invest a great deal of money in each other's territory. And I want to emphasise one more time that, Chok Tong, the more the merrier. We want to see more Singaporean investment coming into Hong Kong.

So the relationship between Hong Kong and Singapore is a very close one. It is a very close relationship. It is not just a personal relationship that, Prime Minister, you and I have, but it is a relationship in trade, in commerce, in people. It is a very wide-ranging relationship. And it is a relationship which we in Hong Kong treasure very much. It is a relationship we want to keep on moving ahead.

Prime Minister, I know you had a most productive state visit in mainland China. It was a very successful visit and we are also delighted to see the relationship between Singapore and The People's Republic of China being enhanced as a result of your visit. The relationship, in any case, has been a very good one.

Well, Prime Minister, you know we are competitors but let us, ladies and gentlemen, think about it this way: if there is only one place in Asia, instead of having Hong Kong and Singapore, if there is only one of us, how dull Asia will become. So it is much better to have Hong Kong and Singapore. So with that said, I would like to one more time welcome the Prime Minister and Mrs Goh, and the delegation. I hope you have a most enjoyable stay here in Hong Kong. Thank you very much.

Photos:

Photo 1: The Chief Executive, Mr Tung Chee Hwa, met with the visiting Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr Goh Chok Tong, at Government House. Mr Tung updated Mr Goh on the latest developments in Hong Kong, including the progress of our economic recovery. They exchanged views on the financial situation and economic developments in the region. Mr Tung took the opportunity to brief Mr Goh on his recent visit to North America. He stressed the importance to Hong Kong of the granting of Permanent Normal Trade Relations status to China by the US and China's accession to the World Trade Organisation. The Financial Secretary, Mr Donald Tsang, also attended the meeting.

Photo 2: Photograph shows Mr Tung and Mr Goh proposing a toast to the guests at the dinner.

End/Monday, April 17, 2000

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